2014 was a banner year for a handful of rappers and producers who were familiar to hip-hop fans – Young Money, GOOD Music, Wiz Khalifa, Rick Ross, etc – but their music was evolving and absorbing influences from the margins. Upstarts Fetty Wap, Rae Sremmurd, Bobby Shmurda, OT Genasis, Makonnen and Dej Loaf all scored huge hits and got cosigns from the previous generation of rap stars. DJ Mustard kept chugging along with a string of top 10 radio records in a streak which may have only been preceded by The Neptunes the decade prior.

History of Hip Hop 2014 is a rich tapestry of ATL trap, West Coast gangster rap and NYC drug dealer anthems, plus a ton of styles that defy categorization (D.R.A.M. raps over a Nintendo theme, Vic Mensa sings over deep house, Mystikal does a spot-on James Brown impression and Kanye is flipping full on gospel music). We hope you enjoy listening to the mix as much as we did making it!

Rub Radio is back with a mix of new music, our first one in a while after 4 consecutive Hip Hop History mixes. Ayres and Eleven pay tribute to Nipsey Hussle (RIP), build a vibe with new disco, hip-hop and R&B then close out the set with some deep house and club records. Enjoy! And be sure to come back next month for Hip Hop History 2014.

Recorded live at House of Wax in Downtown Brooklyn, Love Rap is over two and a half hours of hip-hop love songs. From LL Cool J “I Need Love” (1987) to SZA & Travis Scott “Love Galore” (2017), this is the very best of rap romance and sexual braggadocio.

There’s an argument to be made that 2012 was one of the greatest years in hip-hop. The Rub’s History of Hip Hop 2012 mix argues the case forcefully, with wall to wall bangers in a plethora of regional styles.

LA’s DJ Mustard produced approximately 99.9% of the songs on hip-hop & R&B radio, and Kendrick Lamar dropped a masterpiece of an LP. Future, Macklemore, and Trinidad James blew up, Big Sean, Meek Mill and 2 Chainz had monster radio records, and Kanye’s G.O.O.D. music compilation kept him on the airwaves (alongside Jay-Z and Pusha T). NOLA bounce saw a big resurgence: Nicky Da B went from local artist to international sensation with “Express Yourself,” and the “Triggaman” beat found its way into big club singles by T.I. & Lil Wayne, Trina and Meek Mill among others. ATL-style hip-hop trap and EDM-style trap began to play nice together, and DJs like Bauuer, Diplo, Lunice & Hudson Mohawke, RL Grime and Cashmere Cat all had big hybrid hip-hop-R&B-EDM-trap records. The Bay area scene also produced a bunch of hits, especially HBK Gang. Throw in a NY renaissance – French Montana, Nicki Minaj, ASAP Mob, Action Bronson, El-P, etc – and you’ve got yourself a banner year for hip-hop.